Mistborn Adventures

The Basics

The Mistborn Adventure Game centers on a Crew of rebels operating between the classes and among the shadows of Scadrial, the world featured in the Mistborn novels. These brave or foolhardy men and women may be former slave skaa, disenfranchised nobility, or travelers from the far-off Terris mountains. They may wield magic or have the clout to summon armies, stymie lords, or rouse the masses. They’re brought together by a common cause that drives them, every day, to change the world.

This is what makes them Heroes.

THESTUFF OF HEROES

Heroes are created as the game is played: through casual conversation. Players answer a series of questions about their Crew and their Hero, and in most cases their answers become part of their character. Beyond a personal history, here’s what makes up a Hero:

ATTRIBUTES

(each ranging from 2 to 6 traditional six-sided dice)

Physique:

Physical fitness and speed, including strength, agility, and endurance

Charm:

Natural charisma and social skills, including appearance and ability to lead

Wits:

Intelligence and insight, from wisdom to raw knowledge to resourcefulness

STANDINGS

(each ranging from 2 to 10 traditional six-sided dice)

Resources:

Wealth, privilege, and financial might

Influence:

Political power, contacts, and ability to call in favors

Spirit:

Fate, connection to the metaphysical, and ability to survive against the odds

TRAITS

(each granting a bonus die with applicable rolls)

These are player-defined characteristics like Drive, Profession, Specialty, Feature, and Personality. They can also cover skills, knacks, quirks, relationships, and more.

When creating Traits, you need to follow four simple rules:

A Trait must…

• Be specific.

• Be descriptive.

• Not replicate the name or function of any other statistic, Trait,
system term, or ability.

• Be approved by the Narrator before it can be added to a Hero.

As a rule, if a Trait would apply to nearly all or virtually none of the rolls you
might make, it’s no good. Once again, this determination is made solely by the
Narrator, though everyone will probably benefit from the occasional discussion
about what the players expect out of Traits vs. how the Narrator expects them to
be applied.

POWERS

(each with a rating used as dice, or determining its effects)

A few Heroes also have superhuman or metaphysical abilities, which can include:

Allomancy:

Mistborn and Mistings can consume and burn metals for various effects.

Feruchemy:

Feruchemists can store physical, mental, and emotional aspects of their being within “metalminds,” and then tap them for dramatic boosts to the same aspects.

Mimicry:

Kandra can mimic the forms of those whose bones they consume.

Stunts can be learned for many Powers, enhancing them for a wide range of uses.

RESILIENCE

Characters can suffer many different kinds of injury, from physical (stabbings, beatings, and other bodily violence) to social (slander, embarrassment, and other public disgraces) to mental (intimidation, trickery, crises of faith, and similar tests of mettle). A character’s ability to withstand these assaults is called Resilience and it takes three forms, each derived from an Attribute and a Standing

Health:

Physical endurance

Physique + Resources

Reputation:

Social status and respect

Charm + Influence

Willpower:

Guts, sense, and determination

Wits + Spirit

Whenever a character is physically, socially, or mentally injured, the damage reduces one of his or her Resiliences. A variety of effects are felt as a Resilience falls, and when it drops to 0 or below the character is defeated in a fashion appropriate to the attack. A physical beating that takes out the last of a character’s Health might result in unconsciousness or death, while a scandal that strips away the last of a character’s Reputation might result in public censure or even calls for arrest. A character losing the last of his or her Willpower to a brutal browbeating might agree to the attacker’s demands, while a character losing the same due to overwhelming opposition on the battlefield might simply surrender.

PLAYINGTHEGAME

The Mistborn Adventure Game focuses on character-oriented roleplay, with dice rolls reserved for risky maneuvers with high stakes. Even when danger’s afoot and the bones come out, story remains the very heart of the action.

All rolls are made with a pool of 2 to 10 traditional six-sided dice. The Narrator chooses one Attribute, Standing, or a Power rating that most fits your action, and you…

..add 1 die for each Trait that applies.

..add 1 die if you have a helpful item, or subtract 1 die if you’re missing a critical one.

Again, you can only roll 2 to 10 dice. Each die above 10 grants a bonus Nudge, and each die below 2 worsens your Outcome by 1 (keep reading).

The Narrator assigns a Difficulty of 1 (simple) to 5 (near impossible) and you roll, immediately putting any 6’s aside. If the numbers on two or more of your dice match, the highest number shown on any matching set is your Result.

• If your Result equals or beats the Difficulty, the roll (and action) succeeds.

• Otherwise, your roll (and the action) fails.

Optional: Subtract the Difficulty from your Result to obtain your Outcome, which
may be positive or negative and defines how well you succeeded (positive) of how badly you failed (negative). The Narrator describes all Outcomes.

Contests: Sometimes an action is resisted by another character (in a chase, or during an arm wrestling match). In these cases, the highest numbered set wins (with ties broken by the highest number of Nudges, or continuing as a stalemate if Nudges are also tied).

COMPLICATIONS & NUDGES

For each point of negative Outcome, your Hero suffers a Complication (a Narrator defined setback or problem). If your Outcome is –3 or worse, the Narrator may alternately apply a single Complication to your Hero and all Crewmates and allies in the area. Each 6 you roll is a Nudge and may be used to barter with the Narrator to “nudge” your success (e.g. boost a jump’s distance by a few feet per Nudge). If you roll 3 or more Nudges, you can forego bartering to instead “catch a Beat” (gain an action).

CONFLICTS

When characters fight (physically, socially, or mentally), they declare actions from lowest Wits to highest, gaining Action Dice as they go. Turns go from most Action Dice to least. When it’s your turn, you may roll 2 or more dice to act, and any leftover dice become your Defense Dice. Your target may defend by rolling 2 or more Action or Defense Dice, and if his or her roll succeeds you must also beat the Result to inflict damage.

If you attack and succeed (scoring a match and beating any opposing Defense roll), one of the target’s Resiliences (Health, Reputation, or Willpower) drops by 1 + any from gear + 1 per Nudge you apply. When any Resilience drops to 0, the target is incapacitated (unconscious at 0 Health, disgraced at 0 Reputation, or devastated at 0 Willpower).